The Touch of the Sacred by Immink F. Gerrit;

Author:Immink, F. Gerrit;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.
Published: 2014-05-21T16:00:00+00:00

Characteristics of Christian Baptism

The baptismal ritual must meet a number of secondary requirements if it is to be recognized as a Christian baptism. In 1982 the World Council of Churches published a report, the Lima Report, in which the constituent parts of the baptismal rite were listed:

Within any comprehensive order of baptism at least the following elements should find a place: the proclamation of the Scriptures referring to baptism; an invocation of the Holy Spirit; a renunciation of evil; a profession of faith in Christ and the Holy Trinity; the use of water; a declaration that the persons baptized have acquired a new identity as sons and daughters of God, and, as members of the Church, [have been] called to be witnesses of the Gospel. Some churches consider that Christian initiation is not complete without the sealing of the baptized with the gift of the Holy Spirit and participation in Holy Communion.93

Let us now stop to look at how these various aspects figure in the baptismal liturgies.

The renunciation of the devil. In the Lima Report, the renunciation of the devil is seen as a characteristic of Christian baptism. We already saw that the Protestant order, before 1993, asked the baptismal candidate to make this renunciation:

Will you resist all powers that want to rule as gods over you?

Yes, I will.

This custom of the so-­called renunciation of the devil dates from the early church. Renunciation means “turning away from, no longer relying on.” We meet this custom already with Tertullian (b. 160). Through this renunciation, the adult baptismal candidate distanced himself from evil, sin, Satan, and the world as he turned to Christ the Lord. After this renunciation (sometimes accompanied by an anointing), the baptismal candidate confessed his faith and descended into the water. Thus, renunciation and confession were linked. Ambrose made the baptismal candidate respond to the following questions:

Do you renounce the devil and his works?

I renounce.

Do you renounce the world and its desires?

I renounce.

(Following this the candidate is asked whether he believes in the triune God.)94

Does this renunciation also occur in the classical Reformed form? Yes, in three places. First, it occurs in the instruction, at the point where we are called to a new obedience — to “forsake the world, crucify our old nature, and walk in a new and holy life.” Second, the prayer after the infants have been baptized asks that they may “increase and grow up in the Lord Jesus Christ, that they then . . . live in all righteousness . . . and manfully fight against and overcome sin, the devil and his whole dominion. . . .” And, third, the renunciation occurs in the baptismal promise when adults are baptized. The baptismal candidate is asked whether he intends to lead a Christian life and “to forsake the world and its evil lusts.”95 Thus, we conclude that the renunciation is present in the response of the adult who is baptized and in the instruction and prayer that accompany infant baptism.

The invocation of the Holy Spirit and the laying on of hands.

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